Chapter 234 - Are you shameless?

Warning Mature content ahead (Read at your own risk)

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|Innaya|

His words of starting all over again, forgetting everything as if it had never happened, sounded too good to ears. All the hurt, despair we both went through, could we forget it all? Perhaps his suggestion was not too bad. I should consider his suggestion.

"And, why are we in the bathroom when your family is out?" I asked.

"Because I can't leave my beautiful wife to struggle alone when she needs my help. Can I?" Eshan replied cheekily.

"Who needs your help? I can manage on my own. The door is that way." I pointed at the door. 

Eshan being the stubborn man, ignored my words, but his face turned serious. "I'm being serious, Innaya. You can't move much, at least not for two days. Wait till the swelling reduces, then you can do as you please, not now. Right now you aren't feeling pain because of the meds, but once the effect wears off…" he knowingly dropped the sentence, glancing at my leg. "So, let me help you."

Without giving me a chance, Eshan suddenly uncovered my shoulders removing the dress. My hands went to hold the dress at my chest. "What are you doing?"

"Are you uncomfortable?" He raised his eyebrow, still holding the sleeves on my forearms. 

"Y-you, you…" I looked away, still crossing my arms across my chest. I knew my face was turning rapidly red at his insistence.

Eshan chuckled again. That ticked me off. "Are you shy?"

"Are you shameless?" I retorted. I moved my gaze across space before me. There was nothing I could use in my defense. 

"I can be the one if you want me to be," he replied cheekily.

"Huff…" I huffed. 

Eshan slid the sleeves down, uncovering my shoulder blades. "Alright. Let me take off your dress-"

"Hey! What do you want to do? I-I'm telling you, my leg is hurt," I said a little nervously. His words of going back to the day before one month brought back vivid memories.

"I know. That is why we won't do anything excessive. But we can always play around a bit."

My jaw went slack as I stared at the man before me. Who was he? What had he done to my Eshan?

My hands dropped to my sides.

Taking advantage of my stunned self, Eshan took off the dress completely, leaving my upper half only in the black bra. 

When the cold air hit my bare skin, I wondered whether this was a dream or reality. After letting the dress fall on my lap, Eshan turned around and went to the bathtub. "Stop being so awkward around me. If it worries you that much, I'll take my clothes off." 

Unbuttoning his shirt, he took it off followed by his white vest. The broad muscular back greeted me, giving me a clear view of his slightly tanned skin.

Bending down at his waist, he switched on the water and adjusted the temperature. Leisurely he waited for the tub to be filled.

At this point, I did not even think to pull up my dress. His attention was focussed somewhere else. If I wanted, I would have easily dressed, but somehow I could not. I just could not bring myself to move.

The entrapment of his words was too strong for me to get out of it unscathed.

***

|Eshan|

I had never planned to use the intimate approach with Innaya in our present situation. It just happened. One moment we were talking about Karan, and then the focus shifted to her injury. Mom should not have hurt her like this. 

I still had to hear her explanation, but I felt guilty on her behalf. On my watch, Innaya was hurt. That small cut against her ivory skin with little dried blood showed me the unfairness she had gone through. I sighed.

While dressing it, something came over me. I never voiced it, but in the confinement of my study room, I would often tire myself thinking about why and what went wrong in-between us. Until one time it came back to me about the insecurity she might be facing.

For a married couple, the best security one could give was the sense of belongingness and right to depend upon. Somewhere, I failed in giving Innaya both.

Thinking, we should take our relationship slower, building trust and comfort, somewhere I lacked in maintaining the pace of our relationship. Not that I blamed Innaya for not being supportive. She had always been supportive, trusting my words.

However, her PTSD made her a little different from her emotional needs. Still, after going through such a situation, where the people closest to me had hurt her, she chose to stand by me. How could I disappoint her?

I would not disappoint her, so I chose the direct approach of letting her feel the sense of belonging. If her leg had not been hurt, I might have gone ahead with a rather bold approach. However, considering her condition, I just showed her a little demo. In the future, starting from today I was going to make sure that she never felt insecure about our relationship.

My actions might be extensive, but sometimes extreme situations require extensive measures. 

Innaya looked flabbergasted with the sudden change in my actions. So, I gave her a little time, turning away from her.

A smile came across my lips. Innaya's feelings as transparent as water made my heart drop before beating at a pace that made me feel as if I had run miles of distance without any break. 

Adjusting my emotions, once the water was sufficiently warm I walked back to Innaya. She was still in the same condition. Until now, I had maintained my distance regarding certain physical aspects, never invading her privacy without her consent.

However, this had led to the unpleasant feeling of insecurity in her heart regarding our relationship. I would never repeat that mistake again.